“We hear he’s eating hungrily and that the paint is coming off gradually,” added Lia.

RSPCA Inspector Geoff Edmunds said: “This is a cruel and unnecessary thing to do to an animal.

“Dyeing or painting a bird could cause allergic reactions and compromise the animals’ ability to communicate with other animals of their own and other species and make them more vulnerable to predators.”

He underlined it would have been also very stressful for the bird being held while the paint was applied.

The bird may also have been so desperate that clean the unwanted substance from its feathers it may have ingested some of the paint, which may have been toxic.

He added: “Birds are living creatures and treating them this way sends out an extremely worrying message.

“They could be viewed as novelties rather than as intelligent, sentient animals.”

The type of paint has not yet been identified.

But an RSPCA spokesman said: “There is the potential for the paint to be toxic and harm the animals.”